Survivors

Writers: Miriah, Yvonne
Date Posted: 4th August 2015

Characters: Harki, Ma'din
Description: Harki decides that she needs some human contact.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 13, day 10 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: Rorela, P'nal, U'kaiah

Ma'din

There was always something else to do. Cerillith's flight had taken some of the edge off, but it wasn't enough to drive Harki out of her funk and the greenrider wasn't feeling up for much company. Finally, one day after drills, she found herself knocking on Ma'din's door. She'd been avoiding the brownrider like she'd been avoiding everyone else, but that got lonely after a while. She hoped he wouldn't be too put off because of it.

The door opened slowly and Ma'din appeared, shirtless with his pants only half fastened. He looked at Harki, arched a brow and slowly leaned against the door frame. "Well, well, if it isn't the lovely greenrider coming to call." he crossed his arms over his chest and his lips lifted sightly. "Been a while."

Her lips curved into a smile. "Did the big bad brownrider miss me?"

"At times." Ma'din replied dryly. "But I didn't want to get in the way of you trying to off yourself." He straightened and then waved her in. "Come on. I've got a small glass and a drink that has your name on it."

She hesitated, stung by his 'off yourself' comment. It was none of his business. "I see you've been listening to Rorela." she said finally, and stepped inside.

"Yeah, but I got eyes too." He used two fingers to gesture at his face. He walked to his counter, poured two stiff drinks and turned to hand her one. "But, unlike Rora, I'm not going to nag you about it. It's your life, legs. It's not up to me what you do with it."

"Good." The greenrider walked over and plucked the proffered glass from his fingers. "Because we have something good going on here, and I'd hate to see you go and ruin it."

That brought a smirk. "Do we now?" Ma'din's brow quirked as he tossed back the drink in his own glass. "Got an itch that needs scratched?" His teeth flashed in a wicked smile.

**Maybe.** She took a sip from her own glass and enjoyed the alcoholic burn. "I thought you might, since Aznith lost Cerillith's flight."

"Oh, the kitten's got her claws out again." Ma'din poured another drink and lifted it in salute. "Well, he's made up for it since, but if you're coming here, maybe the one who won Cerillith didn't do a good enough job." He took a sip and approached her, setting his hand on her hip. "Not that I'm going to be complaining, mind you."

"Maybe." Her mind drifted to K'yne and the aftermath of Cerillith's flight. "Or maybe I just felt sorry for you."

That made him immediately draw back, his brows snapping down as his pride was stung. "Sorry for me." He snorted and walked away to pour himself another drink. "Bloody fecking blazes, woman, don't do me any favors."

She batted her eyelashes, pleased that she'd gotten a reaction out of him. He was usually the one needling her. "Who said anything about a favour?"

She was met by an offended stare, real irritation in his expression as he turned to her. "Then what are you doing here?"

Harki shrugged, dropping the act. Bantering got old, and she'd accomplished what she'd wanted: to provoke a real reaction, and to level the ground between them a bit after his jab about her so-called risky behaviour. "I wanted to see you, Ma'din. It's been a shitty month and I wanted-- shells, I don't know. I just wanted a good evening."

"So far, it's not a good start." He replied dryly, still perturbed at her own snip at his pride. "Well, sit down." He waved at his couch and half dragged her to one end before he sat on the other. "Give me your feet."

The greenrider plunked her feet into his lap with a sigh. "I'm not good at starts. Surprise!" She started downing the rest of the booze he'd handed her, but remembered that the bottle was at the other end of the room and left a fingerwidth in the bottom of the glass. "But you-- oh. You're good at footrubs," she added as his thumb found a particularly sore spot.

"No bloody surprise, you wonky bitch." Ma'din rubbed at her feet, his brows furrowed in concentration.

"Shut up." She would have kicked him, but that might have ended the footrub.

"If I had a mark for every time someone told me that and I didn't do it, I would have a far nicer weyr." He found the balls of her feet with nimble fingers. "And you are a wonky bitch." He snorted softly. "Completely nutters at times and you fecking know it."

Harki sighed and closed her eyes. "So tell me something I don't know."

"Didn't we already play that game? And you didn't believe me when I did tell you something you didn't know." He glanced up at her. "So tell me something I don't already know."

A million things flitted through her mind; P'nal's letter, her terrible relationship with B'lac, the hurt she'd felt when U'kaiah - her clutchmate and one of her oldest friends - had left. But she couldn't quite bring herself to say any of it. "Well... I apprenticed as a Baker."

That made Ma'din's brows rise slightly. "Didn't know that, but sounds pretty dull."

"I'm pretty sure I would have been kicked out if I hadn't Impressed first." She sighed again as Ma'din's fingers hit another sore spot. "Mostly it was because my foster mother wanted to get rid of me. Too much trouble," she added.

"Sounds like we have that much in common. I never even tried to craft though. No one would take me on as an apprentice." He found yet another knot near her instep of her left foot. She had been under some strain, her feet were balls of coiled and tense muscle. "I was a brat through and through."

"I think my foster mother offered a bribe," Harki said dryly. "I suspect she wanted me to take a Craft because I'd be away more often-- and more importantly, be someone else's problem."

"Sounds like she was a bitch." Ma'din's tone was matter of fact. "Were you that much of a hellion?"

"Oh yes." Harki arched an eyebrow. "Doesn't surprise me at all that you were too."

His fingers crept up around her ankles, kneading around the base of her calves with steady pressure. He smirked openly at a few memories that came to mind. "It shouldn't. I was a little bastard. I'm surprised I didn't get the blood beat out of me more than I did."

"Like you'd let anyone beat you," Harki shot back. Even child-Ma'din would have been too tough, too proud for that.

"Wasn't always as muscled as I am now." He started on her calves, glancing up at her. "I may be all manly now, but I was a scrawny kid. I was quick, but sometimes the crèche workers caught me." He

gave a wry grin. "But other weyrbrats, I gave as good as I got."

Again, not surprising. Harki smiled anyway. "Why'd you Stand?"

"For all the wrong reasons." Ma'din shrugged. "Cause they thought I shouldn't."

"I did because I thought I'd never have to do a lick of work again." Her smile twisted. What a stupid girl she'd been. "Then the Pass began."

He snorted, his opinion obviously similar to what she had been thinking, even as he kneaded her upper calves. "Well, I did better than they thought I would."

"You survived. Me too," she said, but her good humor drained away. She and Ma'din had. The risk takers and trouble makers. But others who actually had something worthwhile to contribute hadn't. Like P'nal.

"That's what the smart ones do, Harki, and don't forget it. We survive."

"No. We're just lucky is all." She shrugged a little. "But we survived."

Last updated on the August 5th 2015

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